


Retribution

by WellFuckManIdk



Category: Six - Marlow/Moss
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Amnesia, Angst, Depression, F/F, Hurt/Comfort, Memory Loss, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Burn, Suicidal Thoughts, ghost au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-10
Updated: 2021-01-15
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:02:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 5,349
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27994215
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WellFuckManIdk/pseuds/WellFuckManIdk
Summary: Anne isn’t sure how she died, or what her life was like. All she knows is that being summoned by Catalina that day could be the best thing that’s ever happened to her.
Relationships: Anne Boleyn/Catherine of Aragon, Anne of Cleves/Katherine Howard
Comments: 25
Kudos: 71





	1. Chapter 1

It was supposed to be a normal night, with a normal game of truth or dare. But then Anna had to go and make an absolutely _genius_ decision that derailed the group’s lives for good.

“Lina, truth or dare?” Anna asked. It was an innocent enough question.

“Dare,” Catalina responded. She figured that the worst that could happen would be having to eat an egg, apple, and orange smoothie again. She couldn’t choose truth; Anna would call her a wimp the rest of the game.

“I dare you...” there was a pause as Anna thought of her challenge. “I dare you to try and summon a ghost.”

Catalina raised an eyebrow. “Ghosts don’t exist, Anna. Nothing will happen.”

“Sounds like you’re scared to be spooked,” Anna said smugly, knowing Catalina wouldn’t back down from the dare even if it was stupid.

“And how, pray tell, does one summon a ghost, _Anna_?” Catalina asked sarcastically, still unsure of why her friend would dare her to do something as stupid as this.

“Well, first you have to get red chalk,” Anna said matter-of-factly. “And you draw a circle and you put candles around the edges and a pentagram in the middle.”

“Uh, Anna,” Kitty spoke up from her spot next to the German. “Isn’t that how you summon a demon?”

“...Theres a difference?” Anna asked. Katherine looked at her, disbelief in her eyes, before turning to the rest of the group.

“Has no one here ever been obligated to try and summon a ghost by your friends as a kid?” Kat asked them, the others staring with concern on their faces instead of answering.

Kitty took a few seconds to understand that trying to summon a ghost was in fact, not just a normal thing kids do for fun.

“I’ll explain it,” Kat said after she finished processing. “First, you have to get _white_ chalk. Not red. And you draw the circle on the ground.”

She waited as Catalina got up and shuffled through Jane’s art supplies before eventually coming back with a box of chalk. Lina got out the white one and drew the circle on the floor between the group of friends.

“Good, now you draw the star inside to make a pentagram,” Kat continued. Lina rolled her eyes before doing as told.

“And now you find something that’s important to you and put it in the middle of the pentagram.”

Catalina heaved a sigh, disappearing and coming back soon after with a golden triceratops plush in hand. Kat had to hold in a giggle seeing it. Anna wasn’t so kind.

“Seriously Ari? You still sleep with a stuffed animal?” Anna cackled, annoying the oldest member of the group.

“Well, if you don’t like it, I can just not do this summoning thing.”

“No, no sorry! I wanna see where this goes,” Anna said between laughter, making Catalina question how she was still friends with these people.

“I thought so,” Lina said smugly before moving back to the center of the circle. She put the stuffed animal in the center of the pentagram, trying her best not to dirty the said plush.

“If there is any chalk on Tipper when this is over, Anna, you will be cooking for the rest of the month,” Catalina said seriously, sending Anna a steely glare.

“You named it _Tipper_?” Anna wheezed.

“I named _him_ Tipper, yes. And if I hear you make fun of him again, I’m going to bed early.” Catalina answered. Anna stopped talking after that, taking a moment to let her laughter die off.

“What’s next, Kat?” Aragon asked, looking at her pink-clad friend.

“So now you stand in front of the circle and ask for a spirit,” Kat said, getting up and turning off the lights after Lina was in position.

“This is so dumb,” Catalina grumbled before saying louder, “I request to speak to a spirit.”

They all waited for a moment. Nothing seemed to happen. Kat was about to comment when she heard her roommate scream in fear.

Kat turned the lights on to see two figures standing next to Tipper, laughing, with white sheets thrown over their heads.

They removed the sheets to reveal Cathy and Jane, still giggling at Lina’s reaction. Lina stared at them for a moment before snatching Tipper back up and turning away.

“I’m going to bed,” she announced, marching up the stairs. The others’ laughter echoed up at her but ignored it and got ready for bed, tucking herself in with Tipper. She heard the others come up the stairs and tell each other good night soon after, before falling asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Anne jolted awake, finding herself standing in the middle of a dark room. She heard breathing behind her and turned to see a woman curled up in a bed of some sorts, holding a small animal.

She was scared and confused. She didn’t know where she was or who the sleeping was. But something about her still felt familiar, despite Anne being sure she had never seen her before.

Anne got up and tried to leave that room, but just as she was about to step through the door, something that felt like a chain or a rope tied around her foot stopped her short, causing her to trip.

She tugged at the rope, but it didn’t budge. Standing up, she walked over to the woman, noting that the rope disappeared as she got closer, and tapped her to try and wake her. The woman didn’t stir, even as Anne shook her a bit.

Realizing there was nothing she could do for now, Anne moved to the corner farthest from the woman, sliding down the wall until she was sitting on the floor. Anne curled into a little ball as she tried to stop herself from panicking.

\-----

Anne had been staring at the wall in front of her blankly for hours now, not really present in the room at all.

She was suddenly jolted back to awareness when she heard a muffled exclamation of surprise. Looking over towards the noise, Anne registered that it was the woman who had made the noise. The woman who was no longer sleeping, but instead staring at Anne with fear and fury in her eyes.

The woman lunged for Anne, causing the smaller woman to curl up even farther as overwhelming fear suddenly enveloped her, but when she tried to hit Anne with her small toy, the animal simply phased through Anne. Both of them were shocked and confused at this.

The strange woman glared at her, backing up slightly.

“What... are you?” she ground out, still glaring at Anne. “Why are you in my house?”

Anne blinked before replying. “I am Anne...” Anne trailed off as she realized she didn’t know her last name. Pretending that was the end of her statement to save face, she continued, “and I do not know how I got here, or even where exactly I am, but I do know that I cannot leave.”

“What do you mean you can’t leave?” the stranger snarled.

Anne stood up and walked out the door. She didn’t get far before she was again suddenly stopped by the rope appearing.

“I cannot leave,” Anne repeated.

The woman backed up a bit, and Anne was dragged along by the strange rope tying them together. The taller of the two paused, thinking, before realization lit up in her gaze.

“Are you... the ghost I summoned last night?” she asked. Anne shrugged.

“In normal circumstances I would say ghosts do not exist, but this is nothing normal. And I do appear to have the properties of a ghost,” Anne mused. The woman groaned before taking a small step closer. The rope disappeared.

“I guess since we’re stuck together for a while, I have to introduce myself. I’m Catalina,” the woman said formally.

Anne nodded, the woman feeling more and more familiar to her. “It is nice to meet you, Catalina.”

After that, Catalina proceeded to collect things from around the room before dragging Anne along with her to a bathroom of sorts. She shut the door, leaving Anne waiting outside. Anne continued to wait for a while with the sound of running water coming from inside being the only sound around her.

When the woman – Catalina, Anne reminded herself – came out again, she was dressed in a thin golden t-shirt and black pants. Pants? Anne thought, confused. Women cannot wear pants.

Seeming to sense Anne staring at her, Catalina raised an eyebrow. Anne felt compelled to explain herself.

“Women are not allowed to wear pants,” she said bluntly. Catalina looked confused.

“Yes, they are? Women have been wearing pants since the nineteenth century,” Catalina said slowly. This just made Anne more baffled.

“Nineteenth century? What is the year?” Anne asked.

“2019,” Catalina answered simply.

Anne’s head reeled. While she didn’t know when she died, she did know it was a lot earlier than 2019.

“Oh,” Anne murmured.

\-----

It was later in the morning when Anne met Catalina’s “roommates”. Anne had been sitting on the counter as Catalina prepared breakfast on a contraption Anne had just been told was called an oven when the first came down the stairs.

She was blonde, with skin darker than Anne’s but lighter than Catalina’s, and she was wearing a silver shirt and a black skirt.

“Good morning, Jane,” Catalina said when the woman, who Anne assumed was named Jane, entered.

“Morning, Lina,” Jane replied, a small smile on her face. “What’s for breakfast?”

Anne had to scoot over on the counter to avoid touching Jane as she started helping Catalina make omelets and bacon.

The next person to appear practically bounced into the room. Her hair was brown, fading into pink at the ends, and up in a ponytail. She had big brown eyes that looked innocent and happy.

“Good morning Lina! Morning Jane!” she chirped as she opened a drawer and pulled out silverware. On her way to sit down, she paused and grabbed some napkins from the counter before setting the table.

“Good morning, Kat,” Catalina said, a smile on her lips as she glanced at the bubbly girl.

After setting the table, Kat sat down and started telling the other two women – and Anne, though she didn’t know about her – about a weird dream she had last night.

Halfway through the story, Anne heard a door open and close before another woman walked through the kitchen to get to the stairs, skin gleaming with sweat.

“Hey, Anna!” Kat chirped, pausing in her retelling. “How was your jog?”

“It was good,” Anna answered. She had a German accent. “Nothing much happened.”

“Better nothing than something bad!” Jane added, and Anna nodded before heading upstairs.

Kat had concluded her story by the time Anna came back down, now having showered and gotten ready.

“Good morning, queens!” she announced once she got to the bottom of the stairs. Everyone repeated their good mornings back to her.

The four of them chatted idly for a bit before Catalina said, “Can one of you two go get Cathy?”

There’s another? Anne thought. How many people could one house fit?

Kitty hopped up and ran up the stairs, coming back down and announcing ‘Cathy’ would be here soon. Sure enough, a final woman entered not long after. The newest arrival had curly hair which was pulled to one side and falling over her face as well as tired but happy brown eyes. She was wearing a blue hoodie and black leggings (Catalina had explained modern clothing to Anne after the initial confusion over pants).

It wasn’t long after that when Catalina announced that food was ready and started serving plates. The others lined up next to her and each took a plate with them back to the table, sitting down. After everyone else had received their food, Catalina took her own and joined them. Anne moved as close to the group as possible while still sitting on the counter.

Anne listened to the five of them talk and laugh as they ate. They all seemed nice enough. Maybe someday they would even be able to see Anne. Maybe someday Anne would have friends.

Maybe someday Anne could be happy here. With them.


	3. Chapter 3

Anne spent the rest of the day following Catalina (not like she had much of a choice), and just watching her interact with her friends. Whenever she and Catalina were alone—Lina had told her not to talk when her friends were around, lest she accidentally scare them—Anne would bombard her with questions about the modern world.

So far, the thing Anne liked the most were stuffed animals. She adored how cute they were, the softness of their fake fur, the squishiness the stuffing gave them. At one point, Anne had managed to grab one of Lina’s stuffed animals out of her room, the same one Lina had when Anne woke up. It was a golden lizard creature, with three horns on its face, stubby legs, and a frill on its head that reminded Anne of a tiara. Anne had fallen in love with the thing as soon as she’d seen it and had eagerly asked Lina what it was.

“Oh, that’s Tipper,” Lina had responded. “He’s my triceratops stuffed animal. I’ve had him since I was a kid.” This launched into a discussion of dinosaurs (creatures Anne was now obsessed with).

So, Anne had quickly snatched Tipper off the bed as Lina was walking to the door before trailing after her with the small plush in her arms.

They made it to the living room with no problems. Catalina sat on the couch and Anne plopped down on the floor, leaning against the side of the furniture piece with Tipper still clutched carefully to her chest. Anne started getting fidgety after a while and started playing with him. Making the triceratops hop along the carpet as if he were walking.

It was only when Anna walked in that chaos broke out. She saw the stuffed animal moving on its own and almost immediately started freaking out.

“Lina! What’s it doing!” Anna asked, pointing to the lizard in question. Anne, realizing her mistake, quickly stood up with Tipper, to give him to Lina, which only made things worse.

“Der Teufel fliegt! Bleib weg!” Anna exclaimed, backing up a bit. Anne couldn’t help but find the German’s reaction amusing. She had assumed that Anna was the tough one of the group, but it seemed even she had her moments.

Anne took a step closer to Anna, trying very hard not to laugh. Anna seemed to connect this turn of events with something, as realization dawned in her eyes before she started hurriedly speaking in German, her tone pleading. “Es tut mir Leid! Ich habe es nicht so gemeint, ich schwöre! Ich hab nur Spass gemacht!”

Anne just barely managed to keep a serious tone as she replied in the scariest voice she could manage. “Vous paierez vos erreurs, femme rouge.”

Anne paused at her own words. Since when did she know French? It had just come naturally, but where had she learned it? Another thing to investigate, she supposed.

Catalina, finally having enough of the two’s ridiculousness, stood up and grabbed Tipper out of Anne’s hands. “Really, Anna? That freaked out over a prank?” she said, tone smug.

“A prank?” Anna repeated, bemused. The gold-clad woman nodded.

“To get back at you for last night, of course!” Lina chirped. “I didn’t think it would work so well, though. Guess big bad Anna can get scared!” With that, Lina skipped up to her room, dragging Anne along with her.

When they made it to her room, Catalina shut her door and turned to Anne.

“Now listen,” she began. “That was a horrible decision on your part, but it was hilarious. And frankly, Anna deserved it. So, you’re off the hook this time, you little gremlin.”

Anne grinned, nodding. “I would say it won’t happen again, but that was the most entertaining thing that’s happened since I got here, so it will most certainly happen again.” Catalina sighed at this, but there was a small smile on her face.

“I should’ve known as much. Looks like I’ll have to be the regulator,” Lina mused.

Anne nodded before chirping a cheery, “Yup!” and then hopping onto Lina’s bed. “You brought me here, so you get to deal with me!”

“I suppose that’s only fair.” The older of the two sat down on her bed as well, opening a book from her nightstand.

“Can I read with you? I’m bored.”

“I don’t see why not. Just be quiet.”

Now given permission, Anne scooted closer to the taller woman, leaning so that her face was on top of Catalina’s shoulder and she could see the words clearly.

They spent the rest of the afternoon together, reading.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: swearing, PTSD flashbacks, panic attacks, self-harm
> 
> It’s not as bad as it sounds. All of them are just mentioned inside the flashback and the PTSD is implied.

The next day Catalina woke up a bit late, having slept in to not bother the ghost who was sleeping by her side (Anne wasn’t really sleeping, just staring at a wall, but Catalina didn’t know that, nor had she considered that her getting up wouldn’t bother Anne, because she wouldn't be touching her.) 

Both Anne and Catalina got up when they heard laughter coming from the living room. Curious, they hurried downstairs to see what was happening. Greeting them upon their entrance was Anna, with Tipper in hand, and the others laughing at her.

“What’s going on—Anna, what do you think you’re doing?” It was less of a question and more of a demand that came from Lina’s mouth as she immediately snatched Tipper back from his kidnapper.

“Lina! You were there yesterday, tell them I’m not crazy!”

It took Lina a moment to recall the event in question, where Anne scared the living hell out of Anna, and once she had remembered, she had to hold in laughter.

“Seriously, Anna? I told you, it was a prank.” Catalina told her roommate. Anna stumbled over words for a moment before responding.

“I—Uh—Well, then how did you do it?” Anna demanded, face red with embarrassment.

“A magician never reveals her secrets, love,” Lina smugly responded, making the others laugh even more at Anna’s reaction to what was apparently just a simple prank.

Anne watched close by, appreciating how fond she had become of the women in such a short time, and wishing she could interact with them for real.

Anna spluttered in disbelief. “There’s no way! It was some sort of... ghost, or demon, or something!”

“Lina probably just tied him to a string, Anna,” Cathy explained, rolling her eyes good-naturedly.

“There was no string!” Anna groaned, exasperated.

“Calm down, Anna. I’m sure it’s fine,” Kat said, putting a hand on the German’s shoulder. Anna seemed to relax a bit at the contact. She sat down with the others, though she was still grumbling.

Anne grinned from her spot nearby. She would have to mess with Anna more often, if this was her reaction.

“Maybe Lina’s some kind of witch, or something,” Anna grumbled, and that was all it took for Anne to spiral.

Suddenly she was on a cold, stone floor. A tall, large, red-headed man stood in front of Anne, towering over her. He looked angry, and Anne felt anxiety and panic stir in her stomach.

“Witch!” he snarled. “Slut! Temptress! Whore!” Anne pressed into the wall behind her, staying as far from the man as she could in the limited space she had. Anne glanced around wildly, hoping for some escape, but saw only more people glaring at her. She was trapped.

“Witch!” Henry chanted, louder. And the crowd joined in.

“Slut!” The crowd got closer, forming a circle around her. Anne squeezed her eyes shut.

“Temptress!” Anne covered her ears, though it didn’t help at all.

“Whore!” Were they getting closer? Why was it suddenly a huge effort to gulp in air?

“Witch!” Anne couldn’t breathe.

“Slut!” Anne needed them to stop.

“Stop! Please!” Anne begged the crowd as loudly as she could, but they didn’t let up.

“Temptress!” Anne was sobbing now, which only made it harder to get air in her lungs properly.

“Whore!” The red-headed man grabbed her by the neck, pulling her closer so that they were almost touching.

“Witch!” he shouted in her face, his grip on her throat tightening. Anne let out a strangled, agonized scream, scratching at her neck and trying to pull his hands away. It didn’t work.

\-----

Meanwhile, Catalina was panicking. Anne was flailing from her spot on the floor, tears streaming down her face. Even worse was the occasional cries of pain that would come from her. Catalina didn’t know what was happening or how to help.

“Are you okay, Lina?” Cathy asked her, placing hand on Catalina’s shoulder. “You look scared.”

Catalina sucked in a breath. “Yeah, I’m fine. I just...forgot some homework. I need to go do it. Now.”

And with that, Catalina was running upstairs, Anne being dragged along behind her.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoa we made it 200 hits! Thank you all!
> 
> TW: PTSD flashback, panic attack, self-harm, past abuse

The moment Anne was in Catalina’s room, Catalina was closing the door and trying to come up with a plan. Anne was currently clawing at her neck, and if she didn’t stop soon, she might do some real damage.

Catalina’s first thought was to grab Anne’s arm, but of course it didn’t work. However, Anne did seem to feel it, as she flinched, glazed stare moving down to where Catalina had phased through.

“Hey, hey. Anne?” Catalina tried talking to her next, voice soft and pleading. “Anne, can you look at me, bella?”

That grabbed Anne’s attention, but instead of snaping her out of her thoughts it just sunk her in them even deeper.

A blurry memory of a person, not just anyone, but Catalina. She looked different from what Anne remembered, but she was somehow certain that’s who it was. She was saying something, and Anne couldn't clearly hear it at first. Then, the Spaniard’s voice began to echo throughout Anne’s head.

“It’s a pleasure to have you in court, Lady Anne.”

“My queen...” Anne murmured in response to what she thought was real. Catalina didn’t understand why but those words sounded too familiar to her. It wasn’t time to overthink this, though, she needed to help her friend.

“Anne, breathe with me, okay?” Catalina said, remembering what she sometimes had to do with Cathy when she got overwhelmed. She drew in air, making sure Anne would be able to hear it. Anne paused for a moment before drawing in a shaky breath. Catalina waited a few seconds before releasing the air. Anne attempted to follow, but her exhale came out as a sob, which only made her panic return.

“Shh,” Catalina soothed, her voice only a bit above a whisper. “How about we try something else first, okay? Can you come here and listen to my heartbeat?”

Anne paused, as if unsure, before stepping forward and ducking her head down to Lina’s chest. The Spanish woman responded by wrapping her arms around Anne, hoping it would calm the shaky woman even if there wasn’t direct contact.

They stayed like that for a while, Lina taking exaggerated breaths while Anne followed along, the sound of Aragon’s heartbeat seeming to calm her. Once Anne’s breathing was mostly back to normal, Catalina stepped back.

“Do you know what happened, hoja?” Catalina asked, not realizing the nickname had slipped out until a moment later.

“Just...Some wacky vision,” Anne mumbled, before changing the subject. “What does hoja mean?”

“It means leaf,” Catalina answered honestly before attempting a joke. “Because you were shaking like a leaf.”

Anne cracked a smile at that.

“But I can’t let you get away that easily, Anne. What did you see?” Catalina pushed, and Anne’s smile fell again as she anxiously rubbed the back of her neck.

“Oh, there was just some fat guy yelling at me. Nothing too important,” Anne said, trying and failing to sound nonchalant.

“Did you know this guy? Like maybe you’d met him in your life?” Catalina questioned.

Anne shrugged. “I dunno, I don’t remember anything from when I was alive. My first memory is waking up in your room.”

“You don’t remember anything?” Catalina repeated in disbelief. Anne nodded.

“Well that simply won’t do!” Catalina declares. “I’ll have to help you remember.”

Anne smiled sadly. “Thanks, but I don’t think you’ll have any luck.”

Catalina grinned confidently. “Then I’ll just have to make some luck.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TWs: Death, H*nry
> 
> I think I uploaded this chapter already and just accidentally deleted it.

Turns out Catalina was not very good at making luck. Something about it being a mental concept and not an object or whatever. But she did try.

She and Anne spent a good few hours researching that afternoon, but they weren’t able to come up with anything. Apparently “big fat angry red-head" isn’t a very helpful Google search if one wants to find out about their missing past.

The only real clues they had were the man, the fact Anne didn’t know about modern technology and concepts when she came back, and the stone walls of the building she was in. So, not much to work with.

Eventually it was dinner time, and they decided to finish up for the night.

“Thanks again,” Anne said once Catalina had closed her laptop.

Catalina shrugged. “It really was nothing. Especially since we didn’t find anything.”

“The effort is still appreciated,” Anne chirped as they made it to the stairs. Catalina smiled at her before they split up in the kitchen, Catalina joining the others at the table and Anne moving to sit on the counter. Close to the group, but far enough that she wouldn’t accidentally reveal herself if they touched her and felt the cold spot.

Anne listened as Kat told the others about her adventures with a dog earlier that day. Anne learned three things from this conversation:  
1\. Kat babysat dogs for their neighbors and absolutely loved it.  
2\. Kat could get herself stuck in practically any situation.  
3\. Anne would die again for Kat in a heartbeat, despite only knowing her for a few days.

Now, Anne isn’t one to take promises lightly. If she promises to do something, she will do it. But there was absolutely no hesitation as she silently swore to protect Kat from anything that dared try to harm her.

Another interesting thing about dinner that night was when Anna had just made a particularly funny joke. Anne had laughed, along with the others at the table, and the ghost would have sworn she saw Jane glance over in her direction, as if looking for her. But that wasn’t possible, was it?

\-----

Monday morning, the next day, brought answers to Anne. Anne had been bouncing around the entire time it took Lina to get ready. It was Lina’s first school day since Anne had appeared, and Anne was very excited.

“Anne, calm down!” Catalina said after the gremlin had almost knocked the cup of pencils on her desk to the floor, but there wasn’t any anger in the Spaniard’s voice.

Anne hummed, pretending to mull over her response. “Nope!”

Catalina huffed, amused, before leading the two downstairs.

Jane had woken up before Catalina today, it seemed, as she was already downstairs preparing the ingredients for breakfast when Anne and Lina walked in.

Jane turned to greet them when she paused, eyebrows furrowing in confusion. “Do we have guests over?” she asked Catalina, who now also looked confused.

“Uh, no? Why?” Catalina asked.

“Then who’s that behind you?” Jane responded, nodding to Anne. Catalina and Anne froze, glancing at each other before looking back to Jane.

“You can see me?” Anne blurted out. This only served to make Jane more confused.

“Yes?” It was more of a question than a statement.

“I guess we have to explain then, Lina?” Anne asked the Spaniard, who nodded.

And they told Jane the story.

At first, Jane didn’t believe them, but then Anne asked for a hug. Jane was confused, but complied, and was bewildered when her arms didn’t connect with skin and fabric when she tried to wrap them around Anne. Instead, it just felt like chilly autumn air.

That’s most of what they needed to convince Jane.

“Well! Welcome to our home, then, Anne!” Jane said, smiling softly. Anne returned it.

“Thank you, milady,” she replied in an exaggerated accent.

It was then that Catherine brought up the obvious. “It’s weird how Jane can see you, though, right? Especially since she couldn’t before.”

Anne nodded in agreement. “Has anything weird happened recently, perhaps, Jane?” she asked her new acquaintance.

“I can’t say so,” Jane mused, before her eyes brightened in recollection. “I’ve had these really weird dreams the past few nights?”

“That could be it,” Catalina said. “What were they about?”

Jane took a moment to remember fully before beginning.

\-----

Jane opened her eyes at the sound of footsteps drawing nearer. A moment later and a large man with a red beard stepped into the room, a baby in his arms.

“Greetings, my love,” he said softly, gazing down at her.

“Greetings, Henry,” she said, before glancing at the newborn. “Who’s this, then?”

“This is our new son, Edward.” Henry glanced down at the child. “I wanted you to meet him.”

The ‘before you die’ hung in the air, unsaid.

A small, sad smile grew on Jane’s lips. She didn’t regret having Edward, seeing him now. He was swaddled in sheets, asleep. He was the cutest thing Jane had ever seen. And, she figured, dying was a small price to pay if it gave Edward life.

She turned her smile to Henry, weakly moving her pale, sweaty hand to hold his. “Thank you for letting me see him, love. He’s beautiful.”

And those were the last words Jane Seymour ever uttered.


	7. Chapter 7

Jane agreed to help in the search for Anne’s memories, which both the ghost and Lina were grateful for. However, she did have a condition.

“Now, I’m happy to help you both,” she began. “But my daily schedule is completely full, y’know?”

Anne nodded. “Of course, Jane, that’s completely reasonable. What can I take over?”

“Well, you don’t have to—”

“Nonsense, I’m helping you clear your schedule. It’s final,” Anne interrupted.

“I mean...” A pause. “I suppose it would be nice to have some extra help with chores...”

“I can do that!” Anne chirped. “I’m happy to help, just tell me how to do it.”

\---

And so Anne started helping around the house. Dusting, straightening, occasionally she would even prepare a meal if Jane and Catalina were both busy. It helped that since meeting Jane, she’d been able to move farther from Lina, and could now move freely among whatever floor of the house she resided on.

It was at dinner one night a few weeks later that it came up.

“Y’know, the house has been cleaner recently,” Anna mentioned, sending Jane a smile.

“Oh, yeah! Lina has been helping me,” Jane answered smoothly.

Cathy’s eyebrows furrowed at this. “But Catalina’s always super busy with school and work.” She turned to the Spaniard. “What’d you clear off your schedule?”

“Oh, uh, homework’s been letting up a bit,” Lina answered less smoothly.

“It’s almost time for the midterms, though?” It was Kit this time. Anne couldn’t help but snicker, and Lina shot her a look. “Plus you’ve been spending the same amount of time in your room working.”

“Well, um, yeah, but that’s just, like, studying, y’know? I can take a break from studying to help Jane out. Especially since she’s been helping me.”

“You’ve never been one to take a break from studying until you’re sure you can pass.” Cathy. Anne giggled as Lina floundered for an excuse that would fool the person who was practically her sister.

“I... Well—Uh...” Lina seemed to give up in that moment. “I dunno, I just wanted to help her. How was your day, Kat?” And the conversation moved on. But Anne did catch Anna, Cathy, and Kat sending Lina glances when she wasn’t looking. That could be bad. Or good. Anne wasn’t completely sure.

Time would tell, Anne supposed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait y’all, I completely ran out of ideas for like a month. This chapter is mostly filler but it does set up for future developments.


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